Song of the Week

Song of the Week

Iggy Pop, "I Can't Explain," Who Are You – An All-Star Tribute to The Who

Exceptional. Essential. Vital. None of those words apply to this particular Song of the Week. But I can almost guarantee that, given a playlist on shuffle and the right party, Iggy Pop covering The Who is going to turn heads in the "Wait! What was that?" kind of way that guys who program playlists for parties dream about. Even if this is Iggy operating in safe mode on what was probably a one-take affair, there's still enough signature Iggy Pop strutting and shrieking that your friend's first reaction will likely be followed by "Is that Iggy Pop?" Why, yes, it is. He's slumming on a strange, and often embarrassing, tribute record that also features Peter Noone of Herman's Hermits, Peter Banks from Yes, and, most oddly, Gretchen Wilson. With that lineup, you're going to be the only one on your block with this particular gem. In that way, it feels like a throwback, because these days, with the Internet, everything is available, nothing is a surprise. This still feels surprising, like a discovery, which come to think of it, makes it sound exactly like a Song of the Week should.